Improvement in bulk-heads and piers



' zsheetvsheeu. J. JOHNSON.

BULK-HEADS AND-PIERS.

No. 192,171, Patgnted June 19,1877.

ETER NA |W .NI'IED STATES PATENT Qrrrcn JOB JOHNSON, OF BROOKLYN,-NEWYORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN BULK-HEADS AND PIERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 192,171, dated June 19,1877; application filed April 25, 1877.

To all whom it may-concern:

Be it known that I,'JOB JOHNSON, of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings andState of New York, have invented an Improvement in Bulk- Heads andPiers, of which the following is a specification Great difiiculty isoften experienced in obtaining a proper and reliable foundation forpiers and bulk-heads where the bottom of river or bay is an alluvialdeposit. Piles are liable to sink or become loose, and when wooden pilesare used in many districts they are in a short time destroyed by worms.It is also found that when there is rock beneath the sand or mud thewood pile is liable to slip upon the rock and become displaced.

In the drawing, Figure 1 is a plan, partially in section, showing theend of a pier. Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-section of the pier, and Fig.3 is a longitudinal section at the end of the pier.

I make use of blocks a, resting upon and embedded into the alluvion,through which are driven metal or other piles b, withhardenedmetal-covered points b so as to penetrate into the varied earthymaterial, and act as a holdfast or stakes to the blocks to retain themin position, and in cases of rocky strata beneath the earth thehardened-metal points of the piles will penetrate the seams and fissuresof the rock sufficiently to prevent the piles moving laterally.

When I use welded iron tubes for my piles, in order to obtain thenecessary length of pile, I unite the lengths of pipes as usually madeby heavy coupling-sockets 0. When I use wooden piles I place a steelpointed cap upon the lower end and a strong couplingsocket. I also use aplate, a, to set upon the top center of the block a. The block a and theplate a have holes made through their centers of size to nearly fit thesize of the pile used.

The block a being placed, by means of floats or otherwise, as required,under the piledriver and the plate 0 set upon the block a, the pile ispassed through the openings in the plate 0 and block a, and the block,made fast to the upper part of the pile; then the floats are removedfrom the block, and they are set down to place in their bottom. Thelower point and parts ofthe pile are then pressed into the earth belowuntil the couplingsocket. e bears upon the plate a, and, the platecresting upon the block, the pile and plate and block are pressed downuntil the block is firmly set or embedded into the alluviou below thewater, establishing a strong foundation and auxiliary supportbetween thelower part of the pile and the block a, as also to the pier. H

The blocks a are made of stone or concrete, formed in plain boxes ofwood of any size or shape to meet requirements, having the necessaryopening through the center of the blocks to admit the piles to passthrough. When ready for use the block is floated under the pile-driveror other press and placed in position for. use. The amount of length ofthe top section of the pile, when made of welded tube, determines theequality in height of piles. The piles are made of any length desired tosuit the depth of water.

The upper ends of the piles are provided with capitals g, havinglaterally extending bracketed seats, which seats are designed to receivelateral and longitudinal supports 0 m of timber or iron beams for thepier.

On the capitals g I place girders from one capital to another,longitudinally or laterally, or both ways, as requirements may dictate.

These girders are formed with longitudinal tubes 70 and trestle-blocks6, similar to those shown in Letters Patent No. 184,968, granted to meDecember 5, 1876.

These girders and pilesare connected together transversely by diagonalbraces l, so as to form a firm structure, adapted to resist lateralconcussions and support the weight that may be placed upon the pier orbulk-head.

There are flanged joint-pieces e e for the tie rods or braces f, thatextend diagonally from one pile to the next, and stiffen the structurelaterally.

The top parts of these trestle-blocks are so 'formed'as to receivetimbers or iron beams o m, to be set longitudinally or transversely to Isuit requirements. On these timbers or iron beams the planking or otherfloor of the pier is laid.

I place on the front or sides of the pier or landing bridge a relievingmovable spring casing or fender of any shape orsize required, made withhorizontal timbers or iron bars 4" and vertical planks s, and havingattached to its back surface rams u, which rams are so positioned as toenter the open ends of the tubes is, which form a part of the girder forthe pier.

The tubes being closed air-tight at their opposite ends, or at anyintermediate point, serve as an air-chamber, and the fenders are soarranged as to move to and from the front of the pier, when struck by avessel coming against them, to give relief, as the air in the tubes iscompressed; and there are also placed against the rear part of thisfender two or more levers, t (see Fig. 1,) each having two doublereverse beams and chains, which chains are carried over rollers t 'andprovided with heavy weights 15 to exert a great force upon the inside ofthe fender to allow it to yield and gradually moderate the concussion ofthe vessel when it strikes the fender, preventing injury to the vesselor the pier.

I also place rubber rings 0 on the rams, between the flanges of the ramsand ends of the air-tubes h, as additional springs for the purposesbefore mentioned.

I place chains w on each side of the fender and connect them to adjacentparts of the pier, by which the fender is held to place on the pier, toprevent the fender being moved too far from the pier.

I use timbers or iron beams o projecting from the pier, to set and slidethe lower part of the fender upon, which, together with the ramsstanding in the tubes, form the bearings for the movable fender.

I prefer to place rollers v vertically along the face of the fenders, infront of the vertical planking s, to reduce the friction or slidingthrust of the vessel upon the fenders.

I use vertical guides 43 secured to the fenders, and connected by stronghinges to the sunken piles '6 The faces of the guides i project beyondthe rollers v and their lower portions are slightly inclined toward thepiles i, so that at low water the guards of the vessels, in rollingagainst the pier, may slide up the guides i without damage to the lowerends of the rollers, fenders, or vessel.

I claim as my inventionl. In combination with the metallic tubularpiles, the foundation blocks a, with holes through them for such piles,and the metallic caps c, resting upon such blocks,substantially as setforth.

2. The combination, with the tubular metallic or other piles andfoundation-blocks, of the tubular or other girders k, cap-pieces g, andbraces f Z, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination, with the tubular girders and piles, of the yieldingfenders and the supporting-plungers u, that pass into the ends of thegirder-tubes, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination, with the yielding fenders and pier, of the slidingplunger u, guides 2' and the levers t and weights t substantially as setforth.

5. The fenders for piers and bulk-heads, made of the vertical guides iand rollers c substantially as set forth.

Signed by me this 23d day of April, A. D. 1877.

JOB JOHNSON.

Witnesses:

GEO. T. PINGKNEY, GHAs'. E. SMITH.

